Are these the 10 most amazing churches in Birmingham?

BIRMINGHAM, Alabama - The interior of the Greek Orthodox Cathedral of Holy Trinity-Holy Cross is breathtaking. The walls are covered with elaborate icons. The painting on the dome ceiling, the scent of candles and incense burning and the chanting of Greek - the original language of the New Testament - all add up to making it one of the most mystical sacred spaces in Alabama.

That's why it's at the top of my list of the ten most amazing churches in Birmingham, based on architectural significance and creating a sense of the sacred.

Here are some more: Blessed Sacrament Catholic Church in West End sometimes seems like a forgotten relic. Walking through the interior of this cathedral-style church is the closest you can get to feeling like you're in a European cathedral. Climbing the stairs to the balcony feels like a the setting of a Dan Brown adventure novel.

This is also the site of a weekly Latin Mass, so you can hear the chanting and liturgy in a way that makes you feel like you are in Rome a century ago.

Of course, the real Catholic cathedral in Birmingham is St. Paul's Cathedral, the seat of the Diocese of Birmingham. This is the most vertical church in the city. The tall marble columns are a marvel to behold. A tour of Birmingham's architectural wonders has to include the cathedral. St. Paul's is currently undergoing massive renovation including roof repairs.

Aramaic, the language of Jesus, comes alive every weekend at St. Elias Maronite Church, a Lebanese Catholic congregation in Birmingham. Throughout the Mass, prayers and scripture are recited in Syriac, a dialect of Aramaic. "Mal-ko shma-yo-no ha-so lan khool dah-ty-nan lokh," they say at the start of the service.

"I have entered your house, O Lord, and have worshiped before your throne. O King of heaven, forgive all my sins."

When the priest holds up a communion wafer during the consecration of the Holy Eucharist, he recites a gospel account of the Last Supper in Syriac. In the church library, there is a Syriac manuscript of Holy Week services handwritten by monks, and copies of the Peshitta, a Syriac translation of the Bible. Above the front door, the name of the church is written in Syriac. The liturgy harkens to a time before Muslims conquered most of the Middle East, beginning in the 7th century, when Arabic became the dominant language of the region, replacing Aramaic. Aramaic is a Semitic language, closely related to both Hebrew and Arabic. It is written right to left and uses the same alphabet, syntax and grammar. It was the common tongue of first-century Palestine.

Lebanese immigrants built the beautiful cathedral-style building near the UAB campus. It's the only place in Alabama you are likely to hear Aramaic spoken.

Independent Presbyterian Church is one of the most elegant churches in the city, and firefighters battled valiantly in 1992 to save it when it caught fire. It has recently undergone extensive renovations, and looking down from the scaffolding at the top of the very tall interior in 2011 was spooky but beautiful.

Sixteenth Street Baptist Church was designed by the premier black architect at the start of the 20th Century, Wallace Rayfield. But of course it will always be known as headquarters of the civil rights movement and the site of a bomb that killed four girls on a Sunday morning, Sept. 15, 1963. That bomb blew out the face of Jesus in the east side stained-glass window. That was repaired, and the balcony has another stained-glass window of Jesus that was donated by the people of Wales after the bombing.

The Cathedral Church of the Advent is a remarkable piece of architecture and it was the anchor of the downtown churches as laid out by the founders of Birmingham. They were mostly Episcopalians and so gave the Advent the keystone location on 20th Street at Sixth Avenue North. The stained-glass windows and intricate stonework are stunning. The Lenten weekday preaching and lunches are also noteworthy.

Nestled on quiet country roads between Graysville and Gardendale, there is a little piece of Russia: St. Nicholas Russian Orthodox Church. Before the turn of the century, Eastern European immigrants who came to work in the coal mines settled here and used the savings from their meager earnings to build a brick church with a copper cupola on top, like those atop churches in Russia. The present structure was built in 1916 and has a classic onion-shaped dome like you would see in Russia, and iconography inside.

When the Elyton Land Co. founded Birmingham on 4,150 acres at the crossing of two railroads, it donated about half the land for public purposes, including churches.

In 1872, First Presbyterian Church of Birmingham became the first church to put a building on its site. A wooden frame church was moved to the lot where the historic building would be constructed in 1888. First Presbyterian Church has a quirky architecture - the current entrance is not the original one, as the church was turned around. But it has always been beautiful with elegant stained-glass windows.

First United Methodist Church of Birmingham and St. Mary's-on-the-Highlands Episcopal Church are like landmark castles anchoring street corners, and I've got them tied for tenth on my list.

First Methodist downtown for many years had a dingy exterior from Birmingham's smoky industrial atmosphere in its early history, but the stonework has been cleaned and brightened up in recent years. Its curving wooden balcony and roomy lobby are distinctive interior features.

St. Mary's in Five Points South has a very intimate feel inside and the look of a beautiful English countryside church on the outside.

The best time to visit any of these churches is on a Sunday morning when they are having services. Several of them have annual cultural food festivals: Greek food at Holy-Trinity-Cross, Lebanese food at St. Elias, and Russian food at st. Nicholas.